Army Reserve Staff Sgt. John Zonker talks to a potential recruit about Army opportunities. Zonker was on orders in fiscal year 2014 to Lacey Army Career Center.

Army
Reservist Introduces New Networks for Recruiting Efforts

By
Tom Conning, USAREC, Seattle BattalionJan 5, 2015

Seattle
Battalion is taking advantage of the opportunity to tap into hometown
recruiters through the Active Duty for Operational Support program in the Army
Reserve.

The
program puts Reserve Soldiers on short-term orders to support recruiting
missions.

Seattle
Battalion used four Reserve Soldiers last fiscal year.

“The
return on investment was outstanding,” said Sgt. 1st Class Brian
Lockwood, Olympia center leader. “Usually, they will be drilling members in the
community, which drill locally. This advantage is huge, because they have built
internal and external networks.”

Army
Reserve Staff Sgt. John Zonker worked with Lockwood and said it was an eye-opening
experience.

"These
recruiters are working their tails off,” Zonker said. “I gained a better
understanding of what recruiters had to do. It’s probably more challenging than
people think.”

“Zonker
was also very useful in assisting in Army Reserve recruiting, because he has a
first-person perspective on the Reserve,” said Dawes. “His personal contacts
made it easier to traverse the community of Lacey and gain access to the young
men and women that the Army needs to be the future leaders of tomorrow.”

Zonker
originally volunteered for the assignment for the experience to add to his NCO
Evaluation Report but, said he gained so much from the assignment, that he would
like volunteer for recruiting duty again in the future.